I wish I could say that this had something to do with it, but you would be astonished at how much the average sailor…even some of the officers…don’t know about the subject. I know about it because naval history is a subject of considerable interest to me. I was the geek who read Jane’s Fighting Ships over chow while everybody else had a copy of Playboy hidden inside their rate training manuals.

Oddly enough, the U.S. Navy only did two battleship/battlecruiser conversions. The Lexington bought the farm at the Battle of the Coral Sea and the Saratogo didn’t participate at Midway. The three carriers which did were all purpose designed Yorktown class ships. (The Essex class was an improved version of this basic design)

The Kaga started as a Tosa class battleship with her near sister, the Akagi being built on an Amagi class battlecruiser hull. The Hiryu and Soryu were both designed from the keel up as carriers.

The British had a number of battleship conversions. The French did one such conversion from the hull of the battleship Bearn but it was massively unsuccessful.

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Question authority and think for yourself. Big Brother does not know best and never has.

Wow, what a family history Asanta! Thanks for sharing it. The title of the book is “One Gallant Rush” from a speech given by Fredrick Douglass. It’s a compilation of narrative and letters by the colonel, Robert Gould Shaw. The book was the inspiration for the movie “Glory”. It stars Morgan Freeman ( one of my favorite actors) and Denzel Washington. Several of us reenactors were used as extras. After his unit proved itself battle worthy 186,000 men of color (the sable arm) fought throughout the war sustaining 33,000 battle deaths. You mentioned your ancestors who fought the Confederacy. Do you know what theater and what regiment? My Dad’s grandfather was in the 45th Va. He was captured in ‘64 and spent the rest of the war in prison camp. Dad is a WW II vet, Marine, and was twice wounded in Okinawa. His uncle was an officer in the Spanish-American war. We also had an ancestor in the Virginia militia during the Rev. War. I tell my students that the long timers here had at least 8 ancestors who experienced the war in some form or the other. It’s interesting that the demarcation line between northern and southern culture is still with us. The tendency is still more liberal in the north and more conservative in the south! I guess you westerners don’t see it as much. Just noticed how long this is, Doug,s going to blue line me!
Cap’t Jack

One of my 2x great uncles was a Captain in the LA Confederacy. He was involved in the capture of the Indianola. My 2x great grandfather served a year in LA as a private. He was released after a year because he was over the age of 35. They both served with a captain Gault. General Banks (Union)burned down the area of Lousiana where I had family, and many of them put forth monetery claims for the damage, and most received some compensation. My 2x great grand uncle who served in the ‘colored’ unit was in Lexington, Ky. He was also at Fort Nelson during the Civil War (according to his records). He was a blacksmith, and spent a good amount of time in the governor’s stables caring for the horses needed for the war effort. Two other African American uncles served in the Louisiana Union army, but I do not have their records.

I think it was awesome that you were an extra in that movie! It was a great movie, I knew it was based on a real unit, but not that there was a book! Yes, I agree. Even as an African American, I’m sure I can find others in my family who served in that war. So far I count 11 for the Confederacy and 3 Union. My 2nd great grandfather left his black wife and children to fight for the Confederacy. His wife’s came from a family of free blacks, and although his father owned over 100 slaves, he never did. Of his wife’s family he had one brother-in-law fighting for the South, and one for the North—split, of course, down racial lines. There must have been a bit of cognitive dissonance going on there for him…

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Church; where sheep congregate to worship a zombie on a stick that turns into a cracker on Sundays…

That puts In opposition Asanta, one of my ancestors maternal, great, great,great, great, grandfather fought for the British. He was a Hessian grenadier captured by Washington’s army at the battle of Trenton on Xmas day. He was with the regiment Von Rall. He was paroled and became a farmer here, passing his height to me (all grenadiers had to be at least 6 feet tall. 30,000 came here and 10,000 stayed. This kept my mother out of the DAR!
Cap’t Jack

Funny…Rob Lowe has the same story, and the DAR accepted him on some bogus trumphed up excuse…of course you are not Rob Lowe!
Many of my family members belong to the DAR, I have no interest in joining. Not in the least. At. All.

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Church; where sheep congregate to worship a zombie on a stick that turns into a cracker on Sundays…

One of my 2x great uncles was a Captain in the LA Confederacy. He was involved in the capture of the Indianola. My 2x great grandfather served a year in LA as a private. He was released after a year because he was over the age of 35. They both served with a captain Gault. General Banks (Union)burned down the area of Lousiana where I had family, and many of them put forth monetery claims for the damage, and most received some compensation. My 2x great grand uncle who served in the ‘colored’ unit was in Lexington, Ky. He was also at Fort Nelson during the Civil War (according to his records). He was a blacksmith, and spent a good amount of time in the governor’s stables caring for the horses needed for the war effort. Two other African American uncles served in the Louisiana Union army, but I do not have their records.

I think it was awesome that you were an extra in that movie! It was a great movie, I knew it was based on a real unit, but not that there was a book! Yes, I agree. Even as an African American, I’m sure I can find others in my family who served in that war. So far I count 11 for the Confederacy and 3 Union. My 2nd great grandfather left his black wife and children to fight for the Confederacy. His wife’s came from a family of free blacks, and although his father owned over 100 slaves, he never did. Of his wife’s family he had one brother-in-law fighting for the South, and one for the North—split, of course, down racial lines. There must have been a bit of cognitive dissonance going on there for him…

Wow, what a connection! Yes I know about the Indianola capture, one of my interstate in the Civil War navies. Do you know the regiment number of your great-great’s unit? With that info you can easily fond the regiment history and his name, rank and service record. After finding Dad’s grandfather’s we found his entire service record and muster rolls. We later found the published regimental history at the battle site museum in Fredricksburg. And you probably already know this but there were black Confederates in the war and mostly from the Louisania area. Matter of fact CDV’s of black Confederates now sell for hundreds of dollars. And with the info you have on your rev. War ancestor you could join that elite group of prissy old white ladies! Also, I lived in Lex. And visited Fort Nelson several times. We later participated in a reenactment on the site. Ironically, I helped to form a reenactment unit, the 91st OVI from this area and we reenacted the battle of Cloyd’s farm in Southern Va. My great grandfather actually fought there and the 91st attacked the 45th Va. Position. Many of us have relatives on both sides, especially from a border state. mom’s paternal family fought for the North while her maternal family fought for the South. Same with Dad’s. Hence the feuds in Appalachia. Post war people were still divided and 38 feuds broke out here. My wife’s family and mine were both involved in a feud together. These continued 20 years after the war. Hatfields and McCoys got all of press.

BTW, Glory was one of the best movies made about the war and the actors really played their parts well. Morgan Freeman is an armchair Civil War historian and added immeasurably to the part. He often strolled through the extras camp talking to anyone who came up to him. One of our group saw him sitting under a tree so he just went up and asked to talk to him. Afterwards my buddy hung out with the pirotechnics team and joined them. He’s now working blowing things up for movies. I’m in the beginning Ina Confederate unit (5th Texas) and you can see me just to the left of the flag. My only movie part! The guy I mentioned actually got a speaking part in the movie Gettysburg. He’s talking to C. Thomas Howell who plays Tom Chamberlain. He got $650.00 for the part. Everyone else received $50.00 a day and three meals.

My apologies for butting in on the Civil War discussion. Just a quick note:

I’m about 1/3 of the way through “Measure for Measure: A Musical History of Science” by Thomas Levenson. It is a fascinating look at the evolution of scientific thinking and how it was influenced by the study and development of music.

The Poisoner’s Handbook: Murder and the Birth of Forensic Medicine in Jazz Age New York by Deborah Blum. It’s an entertaining read, murder mysteries, history, and chemistry all rolled into one. I had no idea there was such a problem with wood alcohol during prohibition…

(Who would have thought chemistry could be so interesting. )

Take care,

Derek

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“It is noble to be good; it is still nobler to teach others to be good—and less trouble.”—Mark Twain

I’m right in the middle of David Niose’s book “Nonbeliver Nation, The Rise of Secular Americans”. It should read the rise of the religious right! He gives a detailed discussion of the fundie rise to political power in the book going back to the 80’s with what I like to call “god’s bullies”. I believe there was a book by that name. He even includes Romney’s speeches pandering to them.

The Poisoner’s Handbook: Murder and the Birth of Forensic Medicine in Jazz Age New York by Deborah Blum. It’s an entertaining read, murder mysteries, history, and chemistry all rolled into one. I had no idea there was such a problem with wood alcohol during prohibition…

(Who would have thought chemistry could be so interesting. )

IIRC the author was a guest on PoI awhile back. It’s a very good book.